KP announced a new engagement for Kate Middleton, Prince William, and Prince Harry. Princess Charlene attended a sports award show. And Queen Maxima spent several days in Germany.

KP announced a couple days ago that Prince William, Kate Middleton, and Prince Harry will host a tea party for children of those who have died serving in the Armed Forces, at Buckingham Palace on May 13. The full press release from KP:

“The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry will host a very special tea party in the grounds of Buckingham Palace, to honour the children of those who have died serving in the Armed Forces. The ‘Party at The Palace’ will take place on 13th May and will be a fun and family focused event featuring live performances, various stalls, games on the lawn and the chance to explore the gardens.

“Invites will be issued this week to the children aged up to 18 years of those who have died in service for their country, with each young person accompanied by a parent or guardian. The party will also be attended by a number of charities which help support families, and specifically children dealing with bereavement, including Child Bereavement UK.

“The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry have arranged the event as a way to acknowledge and honour the fact that a number of young children have had to come to terms with the loss of someone very close to them at a young age, having lost a parent in Armed service to the country. Their Royal Highnesses hope the event will provide an opportunity for these children to broaden their support networks amongst other families with similar experiences.”

It sounds like it might be a lot of fun. I wonder if this is going to turn into a Heads Together thing, since dealing with grief and mental health are related.

Update: I just saw that William, Kate, and Harry’s filming for the DIY SOS on February 13 actually showed up in the Court Circular. I thought it was an extra thing just for filming – and put it in the Out and About section of the Appearance Total page – but apparently it was an actual engagement. It’s officially billed as “a Training Day for Heads Together London Marathon runners”. /Update

Princess Charlene and Prince Albert attended the 2017 Laureus World Sports Awards on February 14. Charlene presented the Laureus Sport For Good award to Tim Conibear from Wavews For Change.

Charlene went with a red silk ‘Faille Ball Off-The-Shoulder V-neck’Carolina Herrera gown and long, slim diamond earrings. I’m not a fan of this look. I don’t understand the extra fabric that sticks out over the breasts – it looks odd to me.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima welcomed German President Joachim Gauck to Noordeinde Palace in The Hague, Netherlands on February 6 for a dinner. Maxima wore a stunning Valentino“Silk-georgette gown” gown (which originally retailed for $7,950), and the Ruby Peacock Necklace (which matches, but is not, the Ruby Peacock Tiara) along with gorgeous ruby earrings.

On February 7, W-A and Max kicked off a four day visit to Germany. From February 7-10, the royal couple visited the German states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt with an aim to deepen trade and investment relations and promote cooperation in the fields of Chemistry, Water, and HTSM (High Tech Systems and Materials), as well as mark various historical and cultural anniversaries, such as the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, the Second World War, and the reunification of Germany. There were a bunch of engagements and fashion changes.

Day 3 was quite busy. They visited: the European Energy Exchange (EEX), Grunau, had lunch at the Town Hall, attended the signing of two cooperation agreements, visited the Castle Church of Wittenberg, and had dinner with the PM of Saxony-Anhalt.

92 Comments on Royal Round Up: Kate, Charlene, Maxima (updated)

Good afternoon everyone,
What a stylish lady Queen Maxima is. You might not always like her choice but she seems to be able to pull it off!
She is so individual in her choices.
Just love her jewellery pieces stunning and she knows how to wear them, but day 4 for me she absolutely nails it.
An asset to her nation.

Maxima has panache. Her choices are dramatic and stylish, appropriate to the event, and she certainly has the personality and confidence to carry off pretty much anything. The colour of the Day 3 dress is divine. She has a refined sense of colour and textiles, all of which one would expect from the Dutch.

Sophia, I hope you and your daughter are doing well. Best thoughts to you both.

What I like about the broochis that it has a mounting behind it to make it stand out from the clothing. Brooches are heavy and pull on fabric, often angling downward or getting lost in folds of fabric. That mount ensures the broach stays upright and in your face, as it should.

Oh thank you very much Jen,
We have had our ups and downs, a recent hospital admission as she relapsed, but as I call it the nature of the beast.
It is wonderful being closer to facilities.
I am currently in the process of getting her affiliated with organizations that will be able to work with her and get her as good as we can. That is the plan anyway.
It interests me greatly when I see the Duke and Duchess and Prince Harry creating notice about Mental illness. So important, if only we could do more.
Jen, hope you and your family are well.
KMR thank you for a wonderful review.

Glad to hear things are, on the whole, progressing; one step at a time, eh? Must be a relief to be that much closer to facilities, not so isolated. I am hoping the organisations you mention can support you both. You’re doing a grand job – I hope you realise that. Make sure you spoil yourself a little here and there. All good wishes to you both.

Trust you are nowhere near the bushfires – about 90 being fought at the moment in NSW.

Sophia sending best wishes to you and your daughter. Hope life is treating you kindly.
Agree with you that Maxima is the tops! Her every choice may not be to my liking, but oh, how she pulls things off! She just radiates charm, beauty, style and warmth. Spectacular.

That brooch! I want it!

The red dress that Charlene wore is spectacular, too. But, I was a tad uncomfortable with the plunge of the neckline . If we criticize Kate, I think Charlene should be criticized, too.
Charlene, however, also has the ability to wear her clothing so darn well. As an athlete, I think she is comfortable with her body and knows its strengths. She just is so comfortable in her skin. So is Max!

Hello Jenny, I am always humbled by the kindness and thoughtfulness thank you.
I will pass on your best wishes.
Yes we have now settled into our new digs. I don’t get as much time as I would like to comment on this wonderful blog, but I always make time to read it and absolutely all the comments and coverage. KMR is so on the ball! I just love it.
Taking my daughter to her appointments, therapies, hospital treatment ect,, takes up a lot of time but she is still with me and I can see we are moving forward, slowly and that is thanks enough.
Jenny I hope you and yours are all well.
P.S Jenny, you are right about that brooch, isn’t it just divine, but I am partial to most of her jewelry, even if it is a bit loud so to speak she can really pull it off.
I think she has a wonderful work ethic and I respect that immensely. I think what Greta says really so true, the way she is representing and serving her country she is a class act.

Sophia, my continued best wishes and prayers to you and your daughter. I am in awe of your devotion to her and hope I am as a good a mom to my little girl always. I am sorry for any setbacks and hope that things will move along in the best possible way for you and your daughter.

Jen is right, please find the time to do some nice things for yourself. You certainly are always doing for others — especially your daughter.

May all the support and programs you can line up for her be of great help to her and to you. It’s always nice to see your name on the comment list and to read your wonderful comments, too.

Yes, that brooch! And, all the jewels. How fantastic. Touches the dreams we all have, right?

So pleased you are not in the way of fires, Sophia. And as Jenny said, let’s hope the support organisations can swing in behind all your truly amazing and loving efforts. Such strength and devotion, I admire you!

I’d be happy with any of Maxima’s brooches if she tossed them my way. Also the wardrobe if I wasn’t so short!

Maxima is the perfect and glowing example for a Royal serving his/her country with style, grace and professionalism. Whatever outfit she wears, it’s always perfect for the occasion. But in the end it’s all about her personality. Great lady! I love her.

The tea party sounds a lovely idea, and especially if George & Charlotte are able to attend. And I don’t mean the same as that failure in Canada where William & Kate followed them round everywhere, just let the kids get on with it, let them wander, let them play, talk to the other kids, it would be far more relaxed, and its Buckingham Palace back garden, it will be secure & no doubt there would be plenty of staff to keep an eye on them! And George could be their King one day! Maxima is a naturally beautiful lady but sometimes her fashion choices over shadow that. I have to say I liked her in the trouser suit , she looked both elegant & stylish. Memories of Diana wearing a dinner suit with a white bow tie back in her day (1985 I think)?!

Don’t think so no, but wouldn’t it be brilliant to see the kids, especially Charlotte (she seems a little fire cracker) interacting with some of the younger children! I think it would be one of their best engagement’s to date.

How are you, Queen Lauri? You mentioned on another thread, I think, that you had been feeling out of sorts. Hope all is well.
I agree with you. If George and Charlotte are at the tea, the other children will be forgotten. The entire point of the event is having the Royals there for them!

Queen Maxima has the ability to wear something that is a complete mess and still look great in it. And this is so unique for her.
On the other hand, I just love those state visits because when she goes in full Queen mode, she has no rivalry. That being said, I am never getting on board with the idea of dark tights with open toe shoes. The sparkly Nina Ricci dress is great but those tights ruin the whole look for me. And another thing I don’t get, she went with a pant suit and sandals at the Wartburg Castle dinner and on the next day she did heavy boots with a coat and big hat.
And how gorgeous is that Valentino dress?
Charlene’s dress… I know I should love this more than I do. Charlene is a stylish lady and she can pull off some really bold choices. But being a swimmer and all, she has a heavier upper body and that dress sort of emphasizes this. The open neckline just shows off how broad her shoulders are and it just doesn’t work for me.
And finally, re. the Royal Trio’s garden tea pary – I agree it sounds like a lot of fun. I know, Kate’s being accused of doing so much recently because of some ulterior motive like a new pregnancy or a Carribean vacation in the near future but I am glad anyway. She is out there, being clothes horse and all but she is there and her charities benefit from that, in my opinion. She is seen and critisized for poor wardrobe choices, yes, but at least we hear she has been to this and that and if we are interested in the topic, we will research it. Her appearances made me very interested in Heads Together and although I agree that her speeches and behavior need a ton of improvement, I still follow her and I end up reading more and more about her charities. And that’s part of the point, ain’t it?

Oops, I didn’t even notice that 😀 Does anyone elso also only read the beginning of words or is it just me? This has happened to me so often that i just stop properly reading the word after about half of it because my brain just processes what was the meaning… does anyone else have this problem or am i just strange? Lol

It is a sign that you are a good and efficient reader. There are quizzes that do this in English. They misspell or repeat words, or even remove all the vowels. Lots of people don’t see the mistakes because part of learning to read is to get the jist of the word and move on.

Red gown at The Hague dinner and day 3 outfit- be still my beating heart! I adore Maxima. I would adore her in burlap and a bale twine belt. I love that she is so much more amazingness than what she is wearing on any given day. And that smile, ugh, yep I love her😊.

I feel as if I’ve just landed face first into the cream pastries on the dessert buffet table. Max is like food p0rn- delicious and satisfying for the eyes. Colours are nuanced and harmonious, combinations are bold and stimulating and intelligent, comportment is easeful, regal and confident. Class all the way. Her clothes and style really reflect her personality. I also love that she takes risks. I don’t know whether to marry her or beg to be adopted.

charlene’s dress was a rare miss for from her. I like the bottom part but not the boob part.
I like the tea party idea from William and Kate. I’d like it to be similar to what Madeleine did with the kids and went full on princess but considering the age range it doesn’t sound like that’s going to be the way it is tho.
I love me some maxima =)

Grief is a truly sensitive subject to address. For a child who loses a loved one — especially a beloved parent — it can be painful beyond belief. If this is a “cause” that W and K and H are now adding to their roster of mental health concerns, my hope is that it is handled with the ultimate of care and concern. No “I’m lucky to never have lost a parent” from Kate, please. William? Harry?
Well, they know all too well.

Maxima-love everything except for the Nina Ricci dress, which looks matronly. I hope she will let me borrow that blue silk dress, brooch and all, for a wedding I am going to. Even though I am not a fan of Charlene’s gown, these two women just ooze confidence and sophistication.

I don’t know if some of you read this news, but Victoria will be not present for the visit of Trudeau : some people on RD speculate about the reason of her absence. Officially, she is on a private trip. For what I know about her, it seems stunning that she will miss the visit. With Maxima and Letizia, she is my favourite royal.

I adore Maxima and her gravitas but I’m struggling with the orange and teal number. She’s venturing into Muppet territory. Love the red dress and jewels.

Charlene’s gown needs either the shoulder deal or the straps, but not both.

I would love to seeat G&C at the tea party but they would be so sheltered from everyone and WK wouldn’t socialize with anyone. Not that it would terribly different than their usual, but bringing the kids out would make it more of a private family thing that just happens to be in the same area as a real event they’re “participating” in.

Yes, if W&K weren’t so controlling of their image and their children’s behavior, I’d say bring them; but as they hover and don’t allow them to socialize, and ignore everyone else around them to seem like perfect hands on parents, I say no. A shame as it would be nice to see the tots.

That’s what I said, though I guess that didn’t come across properly. I’d love to see the kids out but nobody would be able to interact with them and WK would spend the entire time hovering over them. It’s a real shame that they use the kids basically as a reason to not interact, when the purpose of these events is to get families connecting with each other.

When Kate did it on the Balcony, i found it strange. Especially because she wasn’t particularly attentive to G in his first year, at least in public.

Pics of them at the polo where she’s ignoring him and he is desperate for her attention. Ditto during the Aus/Nz tour when she was attentive enough, but he wasn’t the focus of her attention….not a judgement, but to show the before and after changes in her parental behaviour. I wonder what changed. She went from normal to almost absent attention to super hovering to a claustraphobic levels.

Sometimes i wonder if her changed behaviour is in line with her new interest in Place2be which had seminars on child development that she attended combined with William’s attention to his children.

I think Kate is one of those people who doesn’t know how to act around kids and doesn’t seem to really like them.
I never really baby sat and it wasn’t until I became an auntie that I become more comfortable around munchkins. I love my nieces (and a few of my peeps kids) but they are the exception and it shows.
She’s used to people taking care of her so I don’t think she knows when her child is in real distress.
I would say it’s not even helicopter parenting but 1) an excuse to ignore other people
2) optics to show that they are good parents

You nailed it, Sarah. I kind of get it because the first baby I held was my own and never intended in having children. However, I did eventually get it and think I’m a good mother (PPD made the first two years of my son’s life one gigantic blur, until his sister was born). Anyway, I agree completely with your observations.

Sarah, I think your conclusions are spot on. That Kate still requires mothering herself would also colour her own version of mothering George and Charlotte. We have no idea what ‘hands om’ means in their minds or circumstances, but I’d warrant it’s very different to those who don’t have 27+ staff. I agree, keeping Charlotte in view for TotC optics, despite the child’s obvious discomfort, revealed Kate’s priorities.

I know its been mentioned before but its so awkward for Prince Harry to be lumped with his brother and sister-in-law for appearances. It looks okay to me if it were just the brothers only. I wonder when he marries will it be the same? Or will he have his own foundation for him and his wife (maybe Meghan) to make appearances. Did Princess Anne go places with Prince Charles and Diana? lol!

Anne was married before Charles was so he would have been the singleton. I find it odd too. It’s more likely they add Harry because he actually comes off as human during the events. To be honest, this might be an event where it is better if it just William and Harry. Kate cannot relate to kids on a good day and with something like this she just won’t be able to pull it off. Kate is not Diana, who could provide compassion whatever the situation. Having kids doesn’t necessarily make a woman compassionate and Kate’s interactions even since having kids have shown that. Not that I think William will be great, but he at least understands loss on this level.

Thank you for the links.
I just read the Diana article and her charm and beauty live on!
Oh, the idea that the little hand prints of her small sons are still imprinted on that sequined gown! That is so dear!
Diana had “It,” didn’t she? While some of the styles of the dresses don’t thrill me, she always wore everything with great confidence and style. That Catherine Walker shift is stunning!
The one shoulder white chiffon is, too.

Thanks for such a wonderful read this Saturday morning. Will take a peek at the other article in a bit. Time for a cup of coffee and a walk around the house with Maddie. She just came in and took one of my hands. So, we are off and running! Or, walking!!

I can never forgive Camilla. Never. Whatever good she does , she destroyed a marriage.

I know I’ll get lots of adverse comments here, but I lived through this. Diana adored her husband when she married, and if he and the BRF had supported her life for the RF would have been so very different.

I have three sons, I welcome girlfriends and will welcome wives, because if you don’t disaster happens.

katemiddletonreview

February 18, 2017 at 1:56 pm (1 year ago)

I still think Charles destroyed his marriage. He had more mistresses than just Camilla.

I think all 3 of them should share the blame. They both had affairs. It wasn’t like Camilla came around and did it all herself. Charles was a willing part of the affair. Diana also had her own affairs. No one is in the total right, nor are they in the total wrong.

Whenever i read the blame game regarding the Charles-Diana marriage, i go back to the James Whitaker obituary of Diana.

He knew both characters better than all of us armchair viewers and in his view that marriage was doomed from the start because they were completely different characters with nothing in common and completely unable to look after each other emotionally due to various life events that had made them into extremely needy emotional vampires. You can’t have two emotional vampires in a relationship together. They have to find someone willing to give them what they need without any expectation of their own needs being taken care of.

Charles’s various mistresses didn’t help, but Diana would have been deliberately obtuse not to know how deeply attached Charles was to them because everyone in their circles knew about them, including Sarah, Diana’s older sister who had been in a relationship with him. All the women who hooked up with him were very aware of Camilla and Kanga because no one in those circles bothered to hide or cover it.

And Diana wasn’t the first woman he proposed to. He proposed to Anne Wallace as well as Amanda Knatchbull who both turned him down due to the ongoing presence of Camilla and Kanga. In Anna’s case, she very noisily turned him down to extent that it made the papers. They were both much stronger contenders in the marriage game than the Spencer family and he only took up with Diana after Anne had turned him down.again.

We also can’t discard Diana’s socially ambitious grandmother, Lady Ruth Fermoy was delighted when they started dating and quickly pushed for a marriage via the QM whose opinion was very important to Charles.

Lady Ruth is comparable to Uncle Dickie Mountbatten who had already arranged a marriage between his own family member, Philip, to the royal and was trying for a second bite of the cherry via Amanda Knatchbull.

If everyone had played by the aristo rules of wives, children and mistresses, the marriage would have stayed on course and perhaps Diana would have found a man who could care for her in the same way Charles had Camilla and Kanga. OR she would have figured to make her marriage work with a mistress or two in the wings. It worked for every single person around her. The few people for whom the formula didn’t work bolted or were divorced because the philanderer’s sins became public knowledge eg Camilla, Anne, Fergie and Diana’s own mother.

Unlike her class and set, Diana refused to play the game and blew it apart. And lost anyway because by forcing Camilla’s divorce as well as her own, the two lovers were able to pull together and start a life together meanwhile she was cut adrift with chasers and users.

A lot of the ladies PoW dated were very interchangeable looks wise. Davina Sheffield was in some photos eeerily like Diana, a real beauty. He certainly seemed to like his blondes with English Rose complexions and a full bosom. Susan George, Camilla, Kanga, Davina, Diana and the list goes on.

From what gather, neither Charles nor Diana were saints. I don’t remember where I read it (a few years back), but Charles was pushed to find a pure young lady by the Queen Mum. They couldn’t risk another scandal after the abdication and the QM pushed him towards the Spencer girls in general, seeing as their family was well established. I believe one turned him down but Diana took the bait. I don’t think either one was truly wanting it but they both made the best of it in the beginning. It would have been different if the church and the family hadn’t been so stern on “the bedded can’t be wedded,” but it was a different time. The marriage was a disaster, yes, but you can’t put that failure on only one person. Especially knowing what we know now of Diana’s activities, as well.

Camilla does a lot of good work for women who are victims of domestic violence. I really admire that in her. It’s still a taboo topic.

To pin the marriage’s failure on Camilla and hate her some 20 years on from when Diana died is pretty ridiculous.

It’s a shame Charles and Diana couldn’t make it work, but they needed the same thing from people, I think: to be cared for. Sensitive, emotionally damaged people together don’t a marriage make, besides the fact they both seem like they were shoved into it without recourse.

I do think they loved each other in their own way, and parented the boys together as well as they could have despite the animosity (I wish my parents could have managed to work out that part of their divorce). Charles’s tears after she died were quite real, I think.

I don’t think Diana was some saint, nor do I villify her, Charles, or Camilla. But I grew up with parents who divorced when I was young due to substance abuse and affairs, and I’m very lucky I have one stable person in my life in the form of my stepmom who’s been a far better parent to me than my mom or dad…

Thank you, Mrs. BBV. The Diana article is amazing. Clearly, she wore her clothes. They did not wear her. And, obviously, she knew how to dress when she was married to Charles. Later on, she just was a major fashion icon. The clothing she chose just fit her to a T.

I was also quite moved by the story of little William and Harry’s hand prints around the knees of the sequined gown. She was a mother first, was she not? The idea that the prints are still visible is so endearing!

The Catherine Walker dress is so simple, yet so elegant! The Versace dress — just amazing!

I wish I could jet over to London and see the exhibit first-hand. Diana’s beauty and her style live on. And, will continue to do so. It really is amazing to think that her life was so short but that she impacted so many in a special, loving way. The world was lucky to know her for the short time she lived.

As fir Camilla dancing with the gentleman — just lovely!!!! She has a special way of bringing happiness to others. I know many criticize her for the affair she had with the married Charles, but he should have gotten criticism, too. I think everyone should have a chance to prove themselves in a different light. I may not have liked Camilla much before, but her actions of late have shown me a different side to her. I admire her and wish her well. But, yes, I am a major Diana fan. As a child, I was so in awe of her.

The shift dresses she wore in the last year of her life were so flattering on her and so elegant. I loved the direction she went when she started dressing for herself. But no one did crowd pleasing dressing as well as Diana.

I love the quote in the Diana article where she says something about how she wished she could wear more fashionable clothes, but her wardrobe needed to last all day with appropriate necklines and skirt lengths. She shopped and dressed for her events, not herself.

She ‘got’ it so early on in her Royal life. It almost came to her intuitively. How she had the confidence before her 20th birthday to choose her wedding dress with just her mother when the entire world would comment on it I’ll never know. I know she had support from Vogue in the early days but ultimately the decisions were hers and she very rarely got it wrong.

Here in Britain we’ve got Pick channel showing a programme called 999 frontline! They’ve followed the East Anglia Air Ambulance a few times now BUT no sign of William! Shame, would’ve been nice to see our future Monarch looking after his subjects.

Did not know where else to post this link. I was just googling the Monaco twins and came across this article about the family’s Christmas card for 2016. The children are too cute for words. And, did Charlene look gorgeous, or what?